Scientists Fear Chinese ‘Superbugs’

Posted on Feb 6, 2010

Leading scientists are criticizing Chinese doctors and farmers for what they believe is a reckless overuse of antibiotics in both the medical and agricultural industries, which, they argue, has led to an explosion of resistant “superbugs” endangering global health. —JCL

The Telegraph:

China’s reckless use of antibiotics in the health system and agricultural production is unleashing an explosion of drug resistant superbugs that endanger global health, according to leading scientists.

Chinese doctors routinely hand out multiple doses of antibiotics for simple maladies like [. . .] sore throats and the country’s farmers’ excessive dependence on the drugs has tainted the food chain.

Studies in China show a “frightening” increase in antibiotic-resistant bacteria such as staphylococcus aureus bacteria, also know as MRSA. There are warnings that new strains of antibiotic-resistant bugs will spread quickly through international air travel and internation food sourcing.

“We have a lot of data from Chinese hospitals and it shows a very frightening picture of high-level antibiotic resistance,” said Dr Andreas Heddini of the Swedish Institute for Infectious Disease Control.